The province will transfer approximately $40 million in dedicated
supportive housing costs to the Ministry of Community and Social
Services or the Ministry of Health. The annual funding requirement
will be assumed by the provincial government, resulting in a
reduction in social housing costs being transferred to
municipalities.

Approximately 550 projects with approximately 5,400 units operated
by more than 200 housing providers will be transferred.

Supportive housing is housing for tenants who
require support services to live independently in the community.
These tenants are typically individuals with developmental
disabilities, people with mental illness, people with physical
disabilities, people with HIV/AIDS or acquired brain injuries,
troubled youth, frail elderly individuals, people with addiction
problems, or are victims of family violence. The Ministry of
Community and Social Services and the Ministry of Health already
fund the agencies that provide the support services to the tenants.

Dedicated supportive housing projects are
entirely occupied by tenants who require support services to live
independently in the community instead of an institution.

Streamlining both housing and support service dollars within these
ministries will allow better planning, monitoring, and
administration of supportive housing dollars.

Domiciliary hostels

In response to an early recommendation of the Task Force on
Homelessness, the province will fund 80 per cent of domiciliary
hostel costs, with municipalities funding the remaining 20 per cent.

This decision is expected to save municipalities more than $14
million in 1998.

The government will review domiciliary hostels in the context of
housing for people with special needs.

Domiciliary hostels are permanent residences for
people with special needs. The hostel operators have entered into
agreements with the municipality and receive a per diem to provide
residents with permanent accommodation and some supports to daily
living. Residents are people with special needs including:
individuals with developmental disabilities, people with mental
health problems, frail elderly individuals and people with addiction
problems. Unlike emergency hostels, domiciliary hostels are
permanent homes for their residents.

General

Tenants in supportive housing and domiciliary hostels will not be
affected by these decisions. They will still have the same
relationship to the service provider and landlord as they have
always had, and they will receive the same services.

These changes will not affect the money available to
municipalities through the Community Reinvestment Fund.

The changes are retroactive to January 1, 1998. This means that:

previous cost estimates for social housing will be reduced by
the appropriate amount for dedicated supportive housing in the
affected municipalities

municipalities will be reimbursed for 80 per cent of
domiciliary hostel costs for 1998 at the end of the year